My "friend" sometimes uses tap water! shhhh!

[salt nate]

Ok, I have this "friend" who uses conditioned tap water sometimes when "he" doesnt have time to run to the lfs for RO water. "He" has even done a couple water changes with the tap water. "He" knows its not very good to do so, but is wondering why it is so bad for his tank???
"He" says that his water quality is perfect, no phosphates, excessive algae, etc... How bad is this occasional bad habit of "his"?

 

[-tara33-]

you are a funny funny person "HE"
haha

 

[novahobbies]

I think your "friend" is fine as long as "his" tap water is fine. Depends on the municipality: some people gots great water, some people gots the crappy tappy. "he" should test his tap for TDS, phosphate, and nitrate.....if it's good, then all is well with the world! I still think RO is better, but heck, in a pinch I've used tap and had very few problems.

 

[salt nate]

whats tds? Oh and Tara...I am afraid these days to admit anything on this site, I have been beaten to a pulp by some saltwater "zealots"
They are like the PETA people...its crazy

 

[-tara33-]

yeah i hear ya but everyone , even the most experienced will use tap water if they just dont have the time, it cant be helped, but me- i work at an aquarium so i get ro free and just bring it home with me weneva i want, but its totally fine i have done it myself with no affect on the system.

 

[paintballer768]

Dont worry man, everyones used tap before haha. TDS = Total Dissolved Solids, like metals n such. A medium-high TDS reading could fuel algae and just lead to crappy water all together. Nitrates and phosphates is a more realistic issue, nitrates especially.
My tap water is horrible. Yours might be decent. Get it checked out for nitrates and phosphates IMO, see what youre workin with. If I were you I wouldnt try to use it too much, but it might not hurt every now and then

 

[jaymz]

TDS= Total disolved solids
a measurement of how much solid matter is in the water. Mainly heavy metals .

 

[salt nate]

so then it should be an only in a "pinch" thing? even if I or he tests everything and its good?
How do you test for the tds?

 

[paintballer768]

Originally Posted by salt nate
http:///forum/post/2835268
so then it should be an only in a "pinch" thing? even if I or he tests everything and its good?
How do you test for the tds?
Im honestly not sure what a bad reading is. The closest to 0 (not sure of the units being used), the better. RO/DI water should run 0, hence why its so popular to use. Ive seen RO water from Publix read as high as 200 though, and bad tap reading about the same.

 

[falsepercula26]

Originally Posted by salt nate
http:///forum/post/2835268
so then it should be an only in a "pinch" thing? even if I or he tests everything and its good?
How do you test for the tds?
,I'd let your "friend" know that the tap water my be fueling "his" greeen hair algae problem lol....jmo....and your local fish store should be able to test your tap water and let you know how good and or bad it is...

 

[bullitr]

i've used large amount of tap water before and i sure the tap in santa clarita valley was bad but my sps prodominate was very stable before and everything was fine but i let it aerate for a day in the tap off container

 

[1990jpyj]

i have used tap every now and again. when i get real busy and cant get to the lfs and get my 5g bucket filled. so i just top off a gallon or 2 and i havnt had problems in years. my dad hasnt ever used RO water at all. he has always mixed it himself. puts his bucket in the bathtub to fill it up. he hasn't had any problems YET... going on 10 years of just tap though so i dont think he is worried to much

 

[deejeff442]

i cant figure out why everyone will spend thousands on thier tank and fish but not spent a hundred bucks on an ro unit?
i have a spicket in the gararge and fill a rubbermaid can constantly.

 

[cranberry]

Originally Posted by deejeff442
http:///forum/post/2835595
i cant figure out why everyone will spend thousands on thier tank and fish but not spent a hundred bucks on an ro unit?
i have a spicket in the gararge and fill a rubbermaid can constantly.
That's just the reply he was hoping to avoid I'm sure.
There's more than one way to do many things. An RO/DI is not necessary for an average tank. I personally have not used tap water in the 10 years I've been doing this....my husband never used RO/DI until he met me (and I brought my unit with me). He's been around this hobby for 51 years. One tank for something like 18 years, so I don't think anyone can say it will ruin your tank.
There is just as much nuisance algae in tanks with RO/DI as there is without.

 

[subielover]

Originally Posted by deejeff442
http:///forum/post/2835595
i cant figure out why everyone will spend thousands on thier tank and fish but not spent a hundred bucks on an ro unit?

+1

 

[m0nk]

You should also be testing for copper, in addition to TDS. Some water sources have copper levels that are toxic to inverts and coral, and once you get that copper in, it's very difficult to get it out. I'd advise against using tap water if you ever want to have inverts and coral. I also agree that if you're spending thousands on your tank setup, why not spend the $100+ to get an RO unit to protect that investment?

 

[m0nk]

Originally Posted by Cranberry
http:///forum/post/2835618
That's just the reply he was hoping to avoid I'm sure.
There's more than one way to do many things. An RO/DI is not necessary for an average tank. I personally have not used tap water in the 10 years I've been doing this....my husband never used RO/DI until he met me (and I brought my unit with me). He's been around this hobby for 51 years. One tank for something like 18 years, so I don't think anyone can say it will ruin your tank.
There is just as much nuisance algae in tanks with RO/DI as there is without.
The previous post may not have been worded quite as nicely as some would have done, but it's also not as bad as it could have been.
And I do have to disagree here.... It's almost like saying that because someone had 15 tangs in a 90g tank for 8 years means that everyone can do it.

Seriously though, not everyone has the same water quality, and if it worked for him, that's likely because he knew what was in his water, or he was really lucky to have good water. The stuff around here has really high levels of cloranamines (the chlorine replacement, which is still just as toxic to fish) and copper. I personally won't even drink the stuff without using a brita filter.

 

[deejeff442]

we have well water here .from what i hear the well water has nothing in it to harm the tank.but for the money i just figured why not just filter it.
i have also used tap water plenty of times in my tanks with no problem.
if only the fish could tell use if they feel the difference.
i did notice however when i used tap water i didnt see the fish as active as i do with the ro.might just be me.

 

[cranberry]

Originally Posted by m0nk
http:///forum/post/2835637
Seriously though, not everyone has the same water quality, and if it worked for him, that's likely because he knew what was in his water, or he was really lucky to have good water. The stuff around here has really high levels of cloranamines (the chlorine replacement, which is still just as toxic to fish) and copper. I personally won't even drink the stuff without using a brita filter.
Our TDS is 650. I live in Los Angeles. There are alot of people on forums that don't actually use RO/DI systems.
Originally Posted by m0nk
http:///forum/post/2835637
The previous post may not have been worded quite as nicely as some would have done, but it's also not as bad as it could have been.
No, but is it necessary? Why should one think they may face flames for asking a question? (hence the "friend" reference) I agree that it was mild, and so was my response, but he already pointed out that he "knew it was bad, but he had some actual questions about his practices. If people get flamey, people stop asking and people stop learning.

 

[bullitr]

i don't encourage it people using tap water because not everybody will be succesful with tap water and r/o di are the best but sometimes its not posible . i myself also invest money on a 5 stage 100g/day r/o di system . but to say tap water its not going to work is not true . i never had a algae problem in my sps prodominate tank before but like i said i aerate it a day before on my tap off container .